Eurozone small and medium-sized enterprises' access to bank loans continued to deteriorate, a survey from the European Central Bank showed Friday.
At the same time, external financing needs of SMEs increased between October and March, results of the "Survey on the access to finance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the euro area" showed.
The survey was conducted between February 29 and March 29, covering a sample of 7,511 firms in the euro area.
According to the survey, the percentage of respondents reporting access to finance as their main problem came in at 17 percent, compared with 16 percent in the previous survey period. Moreover, the survey results point to somewhat higher rejection rates when applying for a loan.
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